Concretions

Dr Ben Wild

Overview

The eyelids are made up of various types of skin, muscle, glands, hair follicles and much more. The outer skin is the normal, tough, keratinizing skin found all over the body. The inner eyelid skin, known as the palpebral conjunctiva, is more delicate non-keratinizing skin.

Concretions are balls of keratinized skin cells and debris that solidify over time and become calcified. They develop underneath the normal non-keratinizing skin. They are usually found on the inside of the lower eyelid but can sometimes be seen on the inside of the upper eyelid.

When concretions are small, they are usually covered by functioning skin cells of the palpebral conjunctiva and do not cause any irritation but when they are large, they can break through the layer of conjunctiva and cause irritation. Concretions are very common findings and are associated with ageing and chronic ocular inflammation.

Front view with the lower lid pulled downwards exposing yellow concretions.

Signs and Symptoms

Signs

Yellow stone-like balls on the inner eyelids.

Symptoms

Usually no symptoms but, if they are large, irritation and foreign body sensation.

Causes and Risk Factors

Causes

Age.

Risk Factors

Ocular inflammation like dryness, conjunctivitis, etc.

Prevention and Treatment

Prevention

There are no known preventative measures.

Treatments

· Artificial tears for comfort.

· Removal with a needle after an anesthetic drop is applied.

Prognosis

Concretions are very common and usually go unnoticed. They do not threaten vision but can be quite irritating if large. Simple removal removes this irritation although there is a chance that more will grow and also need to be removed.